Live Together, Or Die Alone
by BeautyWithintheBeast
Summary: Since The Walking Dead seems to like to mislead us a lot from the previews and...admittingly irritating me by killing off fan favs (R.I.P. Carl) I like to think of how the story would go if I were in charge...
1. Chapter 1

The door opens, and Negan hears light footsteps coming down the stairs which peeks his attention and he lifts his head to see who was walking down this late at night.

"Hello?" a voice says quietly, he realizes it's none other than Rick's daughter Judith.

"Well hello, there." He says sitting up, "I don't think that you're supposed to be down here young lady."

She shrugs as she walks up to his cell, "Nobody's home. I'm supposed to be in bed. But I had a bad dream."

"Oh," Negan says softly, "I see."

Judith sighs then sits down across from him, "I know I'm not supposed to be down here but –" she trails off then looks up at him, "But I don't think you're a bad man."

Negan laughs, "We're all bad men, and your Daddy and I don't agree so that's why I'm in here, but you don't have to worry. Nothing bad will happen to you."

"Promise?" she said standing up.

"I promise." He said smiling at her, and he meant it.

"Goodnight, Negan." She said and then headed back up the stairs.

Judith continued to visit Negan while no one else was home, Negan looked forward to their conversations and in a way, it was calming to him to know that Rick's daughter found more comfort in him than she did Rick. But it was more of how Judith reminded him of life before all of this happened. Back when he wasn't big bad Negan, and Lucille was more than just a bat. And that part of him that he had kept buried resurfaced every time Judith would come and have a little chat with him. Spiteful as it may have seemed at the beginning, but he was really growing fond of her.

Until one night he heard the door open and slam and footsteps rushing down to his cell. He didn't move, he could hear Michonne's labored breathing, "Get up!" she hissed.

Negan clicked his tongue but didn't move, Michonne stepped closer to the bars. "I said: get up"

He glanced at her still unwilling to move. Until he saw her face, bloodthirsty, determined. "To what do I owe the pleasure? What's Ricky Boy sending his woman to speak for him now? The coward too –"

Michonne cut him off, "Rick is gone."

Negan raised his eyebrows and sat up.

"Rick is gone, and Carl is gone," Michonne said staring at him.

"My, my oh how the mighty have fallen." He looks back at her and notices her flinch as if she were considering taking out her katana. "What pray tell are you going to do now, Michonne? Run me through with that." He stands up and walks toward her.

She puts her hand down at her side instead, "Well there's no one here to stop me." She said flatly.

"Look at me, pissing off all the widows. So how did it happen huh? I'm sorry I wasn't there to see it. Hell, I'm sorry I wasn't the one to do it." He said as if challenging her.

"I won't give you the satisfaction." She said getting closer to the bars.

He threw his hands up, "So cut me down right where I stand then like you said nothing's stopping you."

She opened the door and closed it behind her, drawing her katana. But then Negan tackled her to the bars. "But I never said I'd make it easy for you."

As they scuffled rolling on the floor Michonne hit him again and again and as the blood poured out from his mouth he smiled up at her. Sadistically enjoying it, only preventing her from reaching her sword when she dared to grab it. And then just as she was about to grab the sword again she heard Judith's screams from upstairs she grabbed the katana and darted out of the cell and up the stairs, leaving no time to lock the cell or basement door. She was searching for Judith the house had been ransacked and then finally she found Judith crying in a crawl space. As she got her out she heard the front door slam and she knew Negan had left the house. As Judith sobbed in her arms all she said was "The monster was trying to take me." And Michonne held her close as she glanced around for the walker but found none.

Meanwhile, Negan ran out searching only for the walker that threatened the life of Judith, the only person who kept his humanity intact, his sanity, she was his only friend. He saw the walker off in the distance. Seemingly running, "What the hell?" he said to himself and then started to run after it. He had no weapon but it didn't matter he would kill this fucker with his bare hands he thought to himself. As he got closer he realized that the walker was turning around looking at him. He stopped and found a rock and threw it at the walker and it fell to the ground as he approached it he heard groaning but not the groans of a walker, no these groans were human. He looked down and the walker reached up with a knife and tried to stab him. But unaware of Negan's strength he overpowered it within seconds and stabbed it in the stomach. Blood spewed out of its mouth and all over Negan's face and chest. The walker was punching him as he disemboweled it and then it dropped to the ground once more. Twitching and bleeding out. He dropped down to his knees and took the knife and stabbed it in the eye, twisting it making sure that the knife had hit the brain. Then he looked the body over, almost marveling at it and then laughing, "What in the fuck are you?"

Negan got up and staggered back to the house, knowing that he should just keep going. Try and regroup with The Saviors, if there were any left, but he had to make sure Judith was alright and before he even reached the porch Judith had leapt out of Michonne's arms and ran directly toward him almost causing him to tumble backward. Michonne stood on the porch dumbfounded by this and then as Judith climbed down from him he looks up at Michonne, "I think there's something that you need to see."


	2. Chapter 2

Hesitant Michonne didn't move from the porch.

Negan clicked his tongue "I just came back here because I needed to show you what the fuck was in your house and you want to just stand there?"

"I'm not leaving her." She glanced down at Judith, "There might be more."

Negan nodded, "So, bring her, she's going to need to learn eventually."

Michonne took Judith by the hand and they slowly followed Negan through the field, "It's just up past that tree." Negan said nodding forward.

As they approached the tree Michonne glanced at Judith, "Stay here. And be quiet, okay? Just like we taught you." Judith nodded and pressed herself up against the tree.

As Michonne continued to follow Negan the questions started flooding into her mind until she couldn't stop herself. "Why did you come back? You could have just run." She said stopping in her tracks.

Negan sighed, "I had to make sure the kid was okay."

Michonne turned back to look at where she had left Judith then glanced around, "Why? Why do you care?"

Negan shrugged, "If you hadn't noticed she's pretty fond of me."

Michonne rolled her eyes as they approached the walker's corpse. "This is what you wanted to show me? It's a walker."

Negan shook his head and then suddenly grabbed Michonne and pushed her down into some of the tall grass.

"What the f-" she started, but Negan had covered her mouth.

"Shhh, there's more of them." He said nodding toward the walker as more emerged from the woods.

"So, there's a herd of them? We can just take them out." she said reaching for her katana.

Negan stopped her, "No."

Michonne now annoyed with him started to stand up but he pushed her back down. "Watch."

As she stayed in the grass she watched impatiently until it sounded as if one of the walkers was talking to the others.

"Are they talking?" Michonne whispered to Negan.

"There's something different about them." He said watching them.

"Do you think that there's a cure? That maybe some of the walkers are turning back to life?"

"I don't know, let's ask them. Go get the kid." He said drawing the knife from his side and suddenly stood leaving Michonne in the grass "Hey assholes! Name's Negan" he said loudly to them. A couple of them looked toward him as others dropped down next to the fallen walker. "Let's talk!" he said walking up to them, "No? Less talk more action." He said as he went to stab one in the face, but it dodged him. "Shit." Negan said and then suddenly Michonne ran out swinging her katana and slicing heads off before Negan could even take a breath. Two of the walkers that were down on the ground got up abruptly and started to run back toward the woods but Michonne was right behind them. "MICHONNE!" Negan yelled at her, "Get Judith and go back to the house, I've got this." And then he charged right past her and followed them into the woods.

Michonne retreated back to Judith and headed back toward the house, they sat on the porch listening to the silence. Michonne didn't know if Negan was coming back, he had before but he had no reason to now. She couldn't believe what she had seen. What were they? Not alive but not undead. All she knew was she needed to tell the others.


End file.
